E83 
.77 
.W62 



A DISCOURSE 



RELATING TO THE 

EXPEDITION OF LORD DUN MO RE, 

OF VIRGINIA, 

AGAINST THE 

INDIAN TOWNS UPON THE SCIOTO 

IN. 1774. 

Delirered before the Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio, in the Hall of 

Representatives, Columbus, January, 1840. 

■ » % 1/ 

BY CHARLES WHITTLESEY, 

h 

OF CLEVELAND. 



CLEVELAND : 
PRINTED BY SANPORD & CO, 

1842. 

9. -K/S. 



LORD DUNMORE'S EXPEDITION 



TO THE SCIOTO TOWNS, 1774. 



Gentlemen of the Historical Society — 

In the selection of a subject for this discourse, it seem- 
ed to me necessary that it should be of an historical, rather 
than a philosophical kind. It is evident, from the circum- 
stances which attended the formation of this Society, that it 
was originally intended for historical purposes only. The 
gentlemen who brought it into existence were not men of 
philosophical acquirements, though many of them were 
possessed of profound general learning, they were, in the 
old phase, the "pioneers of the country." The striking 
circumstances of that undertaking were still held in vivid 
recollection by them, and they felt that this thorough revo- 
lution, effected through their means, was worthy of a his- 
tory in detail. They found here, at their coming, nothing 
but a wild though luxuriant waste, occupied by a barbarian 
race, who drew their supplies from the spontaneous abun- 
dance of nature, always consuming, and rarely if ever pro- 
ducing. The Indian occupant, although he had held un- 



4 



EOKD DUNMORE'S EXPEDITION 



disputed possession for a period of perhaps one thousand 
years, had formed no permanent connexion with the soil. 
He had not fulfilled the apparent design of heaven, that the 
earth should become every where the scene of cultivation 
and permanent habitation. He roamed through the land, 
like the wild animals of whom he was in chase, a passing 
wanderer, rather than a fixed resident ; leaving behind him 
no marks of his presence, save the rubbish of his wigwam 
and the ashes at its door, The falling leaves of the first 
autumn concealed one, and the decay of the seasons dissi- 
pated the other. Even the places of his burial, which men 
love to make known by permanent objects, were without 
other monuments than the small white flag, rudely fasten- 
ed to a pole, and a hieroglyphic record of the enemies slain 
in battle carved upon a tree. This luxuriant soil, destined 
for the sustenance of many millions, expended its powers 
in the production of an annual crop of weeds and flowers, 
to go annually into decay upon the spot where they grew. 
The riches of the mineral world lay dormant and un- 
known. The mechanical agency of our streams was not 
brought into requisition ; and the Great Lakes, instead of 
being the medium of communication between opposite and 
distant countries, were impassable to the Indian in his light 
canoe. Not one of the abundant resources of nature was 
fully developed. 

We now observe every where the exact reverse of all 
these things ; and those men who may be considered the 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWNS IN 17 74. 



5 



founders of the Historical Society, were eye witnesses of, 
and participators in, the change. The incidents attending it 
were necessarily interesting; and it became to them, now 
in the decline of years, a matter of high consequence that 
there should be a common repository, where each might 
place on record the reminiscences of his early life. And 
to all others, and to posterity, it is of importance that the 
heroic enterprise of those men, whose bravery and endu- 
rance has perhaps no parallel, even in the relations of fic- 
tion, should be authenticated and made public. 

It would then be a deviation in me from the wishes of 
the projectors of this institution, and doubtless of its present 
members, to introduce any other than an historical subject. 
I have, therefore, collected some facts relative to the expe- 
dition of Lord Dunmore into this region in the fall of 1774. 
With the opportunity allowed me, it will not be expected 
that much original information can be presented to you in 
relation to this campaign. 

With this, as with most of the early war parties beyond 
the Ohio, no journalist or regular diarist appears to have 
been present. It is indeed probable, that there may be 
among the descendants of the officers and soldiers, connec- 
ted with those military expeditions, the remains of memo- 
randa of dates, deaths, and other incident?, still in exist- 
ence. We might reasonably expect to find, either in Vir- 
ginia or England, a sketch of the operations of Lord Dun- 
more, prepared by himself, his Secretary, Adjutant, or 



6 



LORD DUNMORE's EXPEDITION 



some of the Surgeons. An address to the Historical Soci- 
ety of Virginia, and some individual or British Society in 
London, would doubtless bring to light something of the 
kind.* 

There were also several incursions from Virginia, Penn- 
sylvania and Kentucky, into the country now called Ohio, 
between the time of Dunmore's expedition and the cam- 
paigns of St. Clair and Harmar. These were often mere 
marauding parties of individual and not official enterprise ; 
bat at this day it is impracticable to obtain many details re- 
specting them. They were composed of dauntless men, 
who thought, fought and acted with great energy, but sel- 
dom or never wrote. 

In 1778, Major Mcintosh collected a party in Pennsylva- 
nia, and penetrated the Indian country to the Muskingum 
river, near Bolivar, in Tuscarawas county, and built Fort 
Laurens. His route was along the Tuscarawas trail, a 
track or highway of the aborigines, portions of which are 
still visible on the waters of the Little Beaver and Sandy 
rivers. 

In 1782, Gen. George Rogers Clark issued from Ken- 
tucky, at the mouth of the Licking, (opposite Cincinnati,) 
with a small command, and proceeded to destroy the Pick- 

*Since the delivery of this Discourse, a letter from John Connally to Col. George 
Washington, dated Winchester, Va., Feb. 9, 1775, has fallen under my observation, 
and contains the following paragraph — " I have transmitted a copy of the Treaty 
to his Excellency, and should have sent you one also, only as I have desired the 
journal of the expedition to be printed including the whole, I deemed it unneces- 
sary." 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWNS IN 1T74. 



7 



awee, Chillicothe and Wills towns, situated on the upper 
waters of the Great Miami. There is an intimation that 
this was not his first expedition against the Pickawee towns. 
The Wapatomaka villages on the Muskingum, near where 
the town of Dresden now is, were attacked and destroyed 
in July, 1774, by a party of four hundred men, under 
Major McDonald. 

In the year 1782, Col. Williamson, who had accompani- 
ed Lord Dunmore seven years previous, embodied a force 
in Pennsylvania, and came to the Moravian towns, on the 
Upper Muskingum, where he committed the noted massa- 
cre of the christian Indians. Soon after Col. Crawford 
made his unfortunate advance upon the tribes and villages 
on the waters of the Sandusky, by way of Fort Laurens. 
Other similar expeditions are reported to have taken place 
from time to time, but there is very little known respecting 
them. I have made mention of them here, for the purpose 
of calling the attention of gentlemen travelling in Ken- 
tucky and Pennsylvania to the subject, hoping that some- 
thing of importance may thus be collected from the survi- 
vors or their families. 

The meagre details which I am able to find in our print- 
ed histories, concerning the operations of Dunmore in the 
Indian country, show us how little is known of the transac- 
tions of that eventful period. 

To understand fully the immediate causes of Dunmore's 
war, we should refer a moment to the previous relations of 



s 



LORD DUNMORE S EXPEDITION 



the Indian tribes to the French and English colonists in 
America. 

The French established themselves at Montreal in the 
years 1607-8, about the time of the settlement of James- 
town, Va., by the English. Prior to the year 1642, the "Six 
Nations," as the confederacy occupying Lake Ontario and 
the east end of Lake Erie was called, had given only occa- 
sional trouble to the British Colonists ; in fact they had 
held amicable meetings and perfected treaties of friendship. 
The colony of Win. Penn, after the influence of the French 
had ceased, reposed much confidence in the northern In- 
dians, regarding them as steadfast friends. It was other- 
wise with the Western and Scioto tribes, embracing the 
Shawanese, Delawares, Mingoes, Tawas and Wyandots, 
occupying at that period the waters of the Scioto, and that 
portion of Lake Erie west of the Cuyahoga River. The 
French had taken possession of their country, and their 
friendship at an early day. The Jesuit Missionaries were 
atOnondoga in 1656, and were found by La Salle at many 
places on the Lakes and on the Illinois River in 1680. 
There are other evidences of their early occupation. I saw 
during the last summer the stump of an oak tree, upon the 
farm of Hezekiah Chidester, in Canfield, Trumbull county, 
in this state, which had been cut by an axe when the tree 
was young, doubtless the work of the French adventurers. 
Relying upon the circles of growth as each corresponding 
with a year in time, this cutting was made 180 years previ- 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWNS IN 17 7 4. 



9 



ous, or in the year 1660. Axe marks were found in a white- 
wood or poplar log, in Newburgh, Cuyahoga county, some 
years since, of about the same age. These wandering 
Jesuits were soon followed by traders, and the latter by a 
few ardent discoverers, each pushing his way in advance 
of the other, till at last, having passed through the entire 
length of the northern Lakes, they struck upon the Missis- 
sippi, and this led them to the gulf of Mexico, and the 
Ocean. 

The efforts of a few obscure men, thus added in the 
course of 25 years more territory to the French crown than 
all of Europe. By the year 1722, a prominent settlement 
was fixed at New Orleans, having a direct communication 
with Canada, by the way of the Ohio river and the Allegha- 
ny, to Fort Venango; thence to Presque Isle on Lake Erie, 
and thus by water to Montreal. In the mean time, the do- 
minion of France had been established throughout the en- 
tire region watered by the tributaries of the left bank of 
the Mississippi, by the means of the erection of numerous 
Forts, garrisoned by French troops. All this was effected, 
moreover, without anv disagreement on the part of the In- 
dians. Such was the force of fine talk, rum and trinkets 
upon his untaught mind, that with more warriors in the field 
than all the French souls in Canada and Louisiana, he gave 
up his country to an armed occupation by a stranger, and 
turned his forces against a less dangerous foe to his inde- 
pendence, than the friends he professed to assist. 



10 



LOKD DUNMORE'S EXPEDITION 



The relations of the French government to the 
English being those of perpetual jealousy and conflict, 
and the former power, having now encircled the posses- 
sions of the latter in America, with a chain of posts in 
full communication, they mutually transferred a por- 
tion of their warlike operations to their respective colo- 
nies here. The actual occupation of the English, in 1754 
(the year of the French war,) was limited on the west by 
the Alleghanies. The activity and enterprise of the French 
had so far outstripped that of the English, that while the 
attention of the colonists was directed to the reduction of 
the French power about the Bay of Funday and Lake 
Champlain, they were unexpectedly surrounded by a cor- 
don of fortresses, sustained by a formidable savage force. 
By the treaty of Aix la Chapelle, in 1748, the differences 
between the respective colonies of Nova Scotia and New 
England were arranged ; but the question relative to wes- 
tern possessions were left for reference to an arbitration in 
the field. The western Indians, having their native hostil- 
ity to the English well inflamed by the efforts of French 
traders, officers and priests, entered upon the French war 
with more than usual vigor. This contest continued eight 
years, and resulted in the complete abandonment of their 
Indian allies, on the part of the French, and the confirma- 
tion to great Britian, by the treaty of Paris, 1763, of all the 
French possessions in North America. In this condition, 
the western confederations, left to cope single handed with 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWNS IN 1 7 7 4. 



II 



the whites now crowding upon their territory, seem to have 
hesitated for a time as to the policy it became them to pursue. 
They were numerous in the field, delighting in war, burning 
with revenge, and anxious to preserve a country to which 
they were attached,from further encroachments. On the oth- 
er hand, were the sturdy colonists, indulging a thorough ha- 
tred of their red enemy, thirsting for the possession of his 
soil, full of courage, and capable of endurance as soldiers. 
War, under these circumstances, could not long be de- 
ferred ; and accordingly, in 1774, eleven years after the 
treaty of Paris, a general conflict began, which continued, 
with unexampled fierceness, and attended by peculiar hor- 
rors, until the victory of Wayne at the Maumee Rapids, in 
August, 1794. It is of the leading expedition of that war 
that I propose to give some account. 

The immediate rupture was occasioned by murders on 
the part of the whites, in the following manner. 

After the French claims to the lands upon the Ohio were 
disposed of, the colonies of Virginia and Wm. Penn set up 
common title to the country about the confluence of the Al- 
leghany and Monongahela Rivers. The followers of Wm. 
Penn adopting the French, rather than the English policy, 
towards the Indians, had thoroughly conciliated such of 
them as were within their settlements, and lived with them 
as friends and brothers. Penn's successors were in posses- 
sion. In the spring of 1774, Lord Dunmore, as the pro- 
vincial governor of Virginia, issued a proclamation warning 



12 



LORD DUNMORE'S EXPEDITION 



all the inhabitants west of Laurel Hill of their allegiance to 
that colony.* And an agent of Governor Dunmore's by 
the name of Conolly contrived to get possession of Fort 
Pitt in the name of Virginia. The governor of Pa. puts 
forth a counter proclamation ; and the Westmoreland mili- 
tia were mustered into service, partly on account of Indian 
disturbances, and also to sustain the authority of Pennsylva- 
nia. About this time a party of Delawares and Shawanese, 
on account of their friendship for the Pennsylvanians, es- 
corted a party of their traders up the Ohio in safety to Fort 
Pitt. Conolly, the Virginia agent, fell upon this band by 
surprise, at the mouth of the Big Beaver, and wounded 
Silverheels, their chief. On the 23d of April, a party, head- 
ed by Capt. Michael Cresap, killed two Indians a short dis- 
tance above Wheeling.f He also attacked a camp below 
Wheeling the same day and killed several. The next day, 
one Daniel Grreathouse, his two brothers and twenty-one 
men, massacred eleven Indians at Baker's tavern, which is 
forty miles above Wheeling, and nearly opposite the mouth 
of Yellow Creek.§ This is the affair to which Logan, the 
Mingo Chief, refers in his famous speech, supposing it to 
have been conducted by Cresap. 

Logan was in camp opposite Baker's, and was probably 
among those who attempted to cross over to the tavern af- 

*American Archives, 4th Series, vol. 1, p. 790. 

fLetter of Devereux Smith, June 10,1774. American Archives vol. 1, ps. 344-467. 
^Declaration of John Sappington. Jefferson's notes, appendix, p. 46. Also of 
Charles Polke, p. 26. 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWNS IN 1 7 7 4. 13 



ter the first slaughter.* He is known to have lost some fe- 
male relatives at Baker's, and other connexions at the camp, 
which Michael Cresap attacked. The excuse offered by the 
whites for the commission of these murders was, that the 
Indians had committed some late robberies, and premedita- 
ted a general attack upon the frontier settlements. Both 
parties being now fully exasperated, the work of retalia- 
tion began on all sides, and continued, with remarkable cru- 
elty, during the summer and fall.| In August, Lord Dun- 
more collected a force of 3,000 men, destined for the re- 
duction of their towns on the Scioto, situated within the 
present limits of Pickaway county. One half of the corps 
was raised in Botetourt, Fincastle and the adjoining coun- 
ties, by Col. Andrew Lewis, and of these 1,100 were in 
rendezvous at the lev T els of Green Brier on the 5th of 
September. It advanced in two divisions ; the left wing, 

* Jefferson's notes, appendix, p. 44. And affidavit of James Chambers, p. 24. 

{Message of John Penn, governor of Pa., to the assembly, July 18, 1774. 
American Archives, 4th series, vol. 1, p. 602. — "I am to inform you, that in the lat- 
ter end of April last, about eleven Delaware and Shawanese Indians were barbarous- 
ly murdered on the River Ohio, about ninety miles below Pittsburgh, by two par- 
ties of white men, said to be Virginians. As soon as the unfortunate affair was 
known on the frontiers of the province, messengers were dispatched to assure the 
Indians that these outrages had been committed by wicked people, without the 
knowledge of any of the English governments, and requesting that they might not 
be the means of disturbing the friendship existing between us. This step had so 
far a good effect as to quiet them for the present, and to prevent them from coming 
to a resolution to enter into a general war with us. It did not, however, restrain the 
particular friends and relations of the deceased, who, it seems, contrary to the ad- 
vice of their chiefs, in a short time afterwards, took their revenge by murdering a 
number of Virginians settled to the westward of the Monongahela." 

See also letter of Wm. Preston, of Fincastle, page 707, dated Aug. 13, 1774, de- 
tailing the Indian murders in his vicinity. 



14 LORD DUNMORE'S EXPEDITION 

commanded by Lewis, struck the great Kenhawa, and 
followed that stream to the Ohio.§ The right wing, at- 
tended by Dunmore in person, passed the mountains at the 
Potomac Gap, and came to the Ohio somewhere above 
Wheeling. About the 6th of October, a talk was had with 
the chiefs of the Six Nations and the Delawares, some of 
whom had been to the Shawanese towns on a mission of 
peace. They reported unfavorably.* The plan of the 

§Letter of an officer from Fort Augusta, dated Nov. 21, 1774. American Ar- 
chives, vol. 1, page 1017. 

*On the 14th day of October, 1774, an express arrived at Williamsburg, Va,, with 
a talk between Dunmore and chiefs of the Six Nations and Delawares, and also 
with some of the Mohawks, the time and place not named, probably at Pittsburgh 
or its vicinity. 

Part of Lord Dunmore' s Reply to the Delaware and Six Nations 
chiefs. — "Brethren: I am much obliged to you for the pains yon have taken to 
heal the sores made by the Shawanese. I would have beemvery glad to have now 
given you a more favorable answer as to them ; but, you yourselves must be well 
acquainted how little the Shawanese deserve the treatment or appellation of broth- 
ers from me, when in the first place they have not complied with the terms pre- 
scribed to them by Col Bouqet, (and to which they assented,) of giving up the white 
prisoners, nor have they ever truly buried the hatchet; for the next summer after 
that treaty they killed a man upon the frontiers of my government. The next year 
they killed eight of my people upon Cumberland River, and brought their horses 
to their towns, where they disposed of them, (together with a considerable quanti- 
ty of peltry,) to the traders from Pennsylvania Some time after, one Martin, 
a trader from my country,waskilled with two men on the Hockhocking by the Shawa- 
nese, only because they were Virginians ■. at the same time permitting one Ellis 
to pass only as he was a Pennsylvanian. In the year 1771, twenty of my peo- 
ple were robbed by them, when they carried away nineteen horses and as many 
owned by Indians, with their guns, clothes, &c, which they delivered up to one 
Callender and Sprague, and other Pennsylvania traders, in their towns. In the 
same year, on the Great Kenhawa, in my government, they killed ***** one of my 
people and wounded his brother. And the year following, Adam Strand, another 
of my people, his wife and seven children, were most cruelly murdered on Elk 
waters. In the next year they killed Richards, another of my people, on the Ken- 
hawa. A few moons after, they killed Russell, one of my people, and five white 
men and two negroes, near Cumberland Gap, and also carried their horses and ef- 
fects into their towns, where they were purchased by the Pennsylvania traders. 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWKS IN 1 7 7 4 . 



15 



campaign was to form a junction before reaching the Indian 
villages, and Lewis accordingly halted at the mouth of the 
Kenhawa on the 6th of October for communication and or- 

All these, with many other murders, they have committed upon my people before 
a drop of Shawanese blood was spilt by them. And have perpetrated robberies 
upon my defenceless frontier inhabitants ; which, at length, irritated them so far 
that they began to retaliate. I have now stated the dispute between them, and 
leave it to you to judge what they want." 

C ap t. Pike, who had been on a mission to the Shawanese, said : " At my arri- 
val at the lower towns I was told by Cornstalk, that he was much rejoiced to hear 
from his brothers, the white people, in the spring, upon the first disturbances ; 
that he had in consequence ordered all his young people to remain quiet and not to 
molest the traders, but to convey them safe to their grandfathers, the Delawar.es, 
where they would be safe. The Shawanese chiefs declared they were well pleased 
to hear from their brothers the English ; and that they had spoke to all their young 
people to remain quiet. Upon my arriving at the Standing Stone, (now Lancaster, 
Ohio,) I sent word to the Shawanese to assemble their counsellors; but as they 
were out hunting, it could not be immediately effected. The principal warriors 
listened to the chiefs, and had no hostile intentions. The mischief which had been 
done was perpetrated by the foolish young people ; but that now, as soon as they 
were assembled, they would be able to prevent any thing of that nature for the 
future." 

The Shawanese said, "That a party of Twightwees, and of Tawas, and a party 
of Wyandot s were as far advanced on their waj' to war against the white people 
as their towns, but that they had advised them to return; that they expected that 
the war which threatened them would be extinguished as they now desired peace." 

The Mohegans delivered the following speech to the Shawanese* — 
"Brethren: Formerly you came to us on the other side of the mountains and told 
us we were your elder brothers ; desiring us to come over and show ourselves to 
your grandfathers the Delawares, that they might know our relationship. We 
did so, and our people held fast the same chain of friendship; but now we see 
you only holding with one hand while you keep a tomahawk in the other. We de- 
sire you, therefore, to sit down and not be so haughty, but pity your women and 
children. We, therefore, take the tomahawk out of your hands and put it into 
the hands of your grandfathers the Delawares, they are good judges and know 
how to dispose of it." 

The Shawanese replied.—" Brethren: We are glad-to hear what you have said, 
and that you have taken the^tomahawk out of our hands and given it to our grand- 
fathers the Delawares. But, for our part, we are not sensible that we have had 
the tomahawk in our hands. It is true, some foolish^ young people may have found 
one out of our sight hid in the grass, and may have made use of it. But that tom- 
ahawk which we formerly held, has been long since buried, and we have not since 
raised it. I heard some of the youug people express a threat at the Delawares 



LORD DUNMORE's EXPEDITION 



ders from the Commander-in-Chief. While there he en- 
camped on the ground now occupied by the village of Point 
Pleasant, without entrenchments or other defences. On 
the morning of the 10th of October, he was attacked by 
1,000 chosen warriors, of the western confederacy, who 
had abandoned their towns on the Pickaway plains to meet 
the Virginia troops, and give them battle before the two 
corps could be united. The Virginia riflemen occupied a 
triangular point of land, between the right bank of the 
Kenhawa and the left bank of the Ohio, accessible only 
from the rear. The assault was therefore in this quarter. 
Within an hour after the scouts had reported the presence 
of the Indians, a general engagement took place, extending 

for interfering so much with their quarrel with the white people; that if they had 
any thing to say they wondered why the white people did not come themselves to 
speak." 

Captain White Eyes, in behalf of the Delawares, to Lord Dunmore. — 
"Brother : As your brothers, the Shawanese are desirous to speak to you by them- 
selves. I hope you will listen to them. I will desire them to speak to you and 
would be glad to acquaint them when they could see you to enter into a confer- 
ence." 

The Big Appletree, a Mohawk, said — "This day it hath pleased God that we 
should meet together who are sent on behalf of another nation. The Shawanese 
told me that they heard there was something yet good in the heart of the Big Knife. 
They desired me to take their hearts in my hands and speak strongly in their be- 
half to the Big Knife. I am glad the Shawanese, my younger brother, have desired 
me to undertake this business, and am equally rejoiced at the appearance 
thereof from your good speeches." 

His Address in answer to the Reply. — "Brothers: I have already informed you 
of the evil disposition of the Shawanese towards us; but to convince you how ready 
the Big Knife is to do justice at all times, even to their greatest enemies, at the re- 
quest of my brothers the Six Nations, and you the Delawares, I will be ready 
and willing to hear any good speeches which the Shawanese may have to deliver 
to me, either at Wheeling, where I now propose to be, or if they would not meet 
me there, at the Little Kenhawa, or somewhere lower down the River." 

[American Archives, 4th series, vol. 1, page 873-6.] 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWNS IN 17 7 4. 17 

from one bank of one river to the other, half a mile from 
the point. 

Col. Andrew Lewis, who seems to have been possessed 
of military talent, acted with steadiness and decision in 
this emergency. He arrayed his forces promptly, and ad- 
vanced to meet the enemy, with force equal to his own. 
Col. Charles Lewis, with 300 men, forming the right of 
the line, met the Indians at sunrise, and sustained the first 
attack. Here he was mortally wounded in the onset, and 
his troops receiving almost the entire weight of the charge, 
were broken, and gave way. Col. Fleming with a portion 
of the command, had advanced along the shore of the 
Ohio, and in a few moments fell in with the right of the In. 
dian line, which rested on the river. 

The effect of the first shock was to stagger the left wing 
as it had done the right; and its commander also was se- 
verely wounded at an early stage of the conflict, but his 
men succeeded in reaching a piece of timber land, and 
maintained their position until the reserve, under Colonel 
Field, reached the ground. It will be seen, by examining 
Lewis' plan of the engagement, and the ground on which 
it was fought, that an advance on his part, and a retreat of 
his opponent, necessarily weakened their line by constant- 
ly increasing its length, if it extended from river to river, 
and would eventually force him to break it or leave his 
flanks unprotected. Those acquainted with Indian tactics 
inform us, that it is the great point of his generalship to 



18 



LORD DUNMORE'S EXPEDITION 



preserve his flanks and overreach those of his enemy. They 
continued, therefore, contrary to their usual practice, to dis- 
pute the ground with the pertinacity of veterans along the 
whole line — retreating slowly from tree to tree, till one 
o'clock P. M., when they reached a strong position. Here 
both parties rested, within rifle range of each other, and 
continued a desultory fire along a front of a mile and a 
quarter, until after sun-set. 

The desperate nature of this fight may be inferred from 
the deep-seated animosity of both parties towards each other, 
the high courage which both possessed, and the consequen- 
ces which hung upon the issue. The Virginians lost one- 
half their commissioned officers and 52 men killed. Of the 
Indians, 21 were left on the field, and the loss in killed and 
wounded is stated at 233.'* During the night the Indians 
retreated and were not pursued. 

Having failed in this contest with the troops while they 
were still divided in two parties, they changed their plan 
and determined at once to save their towns from destruc- 
tion by offers of peace. 

Soon after the battle was over, a reinforcement of 300 
Fincastle troops, and also an express from Lord Dunmore, 
arrived, with an order directing this division to advance 
towards the Shawanese villages without delay. Notwith- 
standing the order was given in ignorance of the engage- 

*Burke's History of Virginia, VoY 3,/ps. 392 8. American Archives, vol. 1, ps. 
1015-1.6-17-18, letters of the day. \/ 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWNS IN 1 7 7 4. 



19 



ment, and commanded them to enter the enemy's country 
unsupported, Col. Lewis and his men were glad to comply 
with it, and thus complete the overthrow of the allied In- 
dians, 

The Virginians, made eager with success, and maddened 
by the loss of so many brave officers, dashed across the 
Ohio in pursuit of more victims, leaving a garrison at Point 
Pleasant. Our next information of them is, that a march of 
eighty miles, through an untrodden wilderness, has been 
performed, and on the 24th of Oct. they are encamped on 
the banks of Congo Creek, in Pickaway township, Picka- 
way county, within striking distance of the Indian towns. 
Their principal village was occupied by Shawnees, and 
stood upon the ground where the village of Westfall is now 
situated, on the west bank of the Scioto, and on the Ohio 
Canal near the south line of the same county. This was 
the head quarters of the confederate tribes, and was called 
Chillicothe ; and because there were other towns, either at 
that time, or soon after, of the same name, it was known as 
Old Chillicothe. One of them was located at the present 
village of Frankfort, in Ross county, on the north fork of 
Paint Creek, and others on the waters of the Great Mi- 
ami. In the mean time, Lord Dunmore and his men had 
descended the Ohio to the mouth of the Great Hockhock- 
ing, established a depot, and erected some defences called 
Fort G-ower. From this point he probably started the ex- 
press directed to Lewis, at the mouth of Kenhawa, about 



20 



LORD DUNMORE'S EXPEDITION 



fifty miles below, and immediately commenced his march 
up the Hockhocking into the Indian country. For the next 
that is known of him, he is in the vicinity of Camp Char- 
lotte, on the left bank of Sippo Creek, about seven miles 
south-east of Circleville, where he arrived before Lewis 
reached the station on Congo, as above stated. Camp 
Charlotte was situated about four and one-half miles north- 
£y ^ east of Camp Lewis, on the farm now owned by Thomas 
J. Winship, Esq., and was consequently farther from the 
Chillicothe villages than the position occupied by the left 
wing. There has been much diversity of opinion and 
statement respecting the location of the true Old Chillicothe 
town, and also in regard to the positions of Camp Charlotte 
and Camp Lewis. The associations connected with these 
places have given them an interest which will never decline. 
This is probably a sufficient excuse for presenting here, in 
detail, the evidence upon which the positions of these 
several points are established. 

It was at the Chillicothe towns that Logan delivered his 
famous speech. It was not made in council, for he refused 
to attend at Camp Charlotte where the talk was held, and 
Dunmore sent a trader by the name of John Gibson to en- 
quire the cause of his absence. The Indians, as before in- 
timated, had made propositions to the Governor for peace, 
and probably before he was aware of the result of the ac- 
tion at Kenhawa. When Gibson arrived at the village-, 
Logan came to him, and by his (Logan's) request, they 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWNS IN 1774. 21 

went into an adjoining wood and sat down. Here, after 
shedding abundance of tears, the honored Chief told his 
pathetic story.* Gibson repeated it to the officers, who 
caused it to be published in the Virginia Gazette of that 
year. Mr. Jefferson was charged with making improve- 
ments and alterations when he published it in his notes on 
Virginia ; but from the concurrent testimony of Gibson, 
Lord Dunmore, and several others, it appears to be as close 
a representation of the original as could be obtained under 
the circumstances. The only versions of the speech that 
I have seen are here contrasted, in order to show that the 
substance and sentiments correspond, and that it must be 
the production of Logan, or of John Gibson, the only white 



man who heard the original. 

Williamsburg, Va., Feb. 4, 1775. 
The following is said to be a 
message from Capt. Logan, an In- 
dian warrior, to Gov. Dunmove, 
after the battle in which Colonel 
Charles Lewis was slain, delivered 
at tbe treaty : 

f I appeal to any white man to 
say that he ever entered Logan's 
cabin but 1 gave him meat; that 
he ever came naked but I clothed 
him. 

" In the course of the last war 
Logan remained in his cabin an ad- 
vocate for peace. I had such an 
affection for the white people, that 
I was pointed at by the rest of my 
nation. I should have ever lived 
with them had it not been for Col. 
Cresap, who last year cut off in 
cold blood all the relations of Lo- 



New York, Feb. 16, 1775. 
Extract of a Letter from Va. — 

"I make no doubt the following 
specimen of Indian eloquence and 
mistaken valor will please you, 
but you must make allowances for 
the unskilfulness of the interpre- 
ter." 

" I appeal to any white man to 
say, if ever he entered Logan's 
cabin hungry and I gave him not 
meat , if ever he came cold or na~ 
ked and I gave him not clothing. 

" During the course of the last 
long and bloody war, Logan re- 
mained in his tent an advocate for 
peace. JNay, such was my love 
for the whites,that thoneof my own 
country pointed at me as they pas- 
sed by and said : 1 Logan is the 
friend of white man.' I had even 
thought to live with you, but for 



^Affidavit of John Gibson, Jefferson's Notes, appendix page 16. 



22 



LORD DUNMORE's EXPEDITION 



gan, not sparing my women and 
children. There runs not a drop 
of my blood in the veins of any 
human creature. This called up- 
on me for revenge. I have sought 
it. I have killed many, and fully 
glutted my revenge, i am glad 
there is a prospect of peace on ac- 
count of the nation ; but 1 beg you 
will not entertain a thought that 
any thing I have said proceeds 
from fear. Logan disdains the 
thought. He will not turn on his 
heel to save his life. Who is there 
to mourn for Logan ? No one." 



the injuries of one man. Colonel 
Cresap, the last spring, in cool 
blood, and unprovoked, cut off all 
the relatives of Logan ; not spar- 
ing even my women and children. 
There runs not a drop of my blood 
in the veins of any human crea- 
ture. This called on me for revenge. 
I have sought it. 1 have killed ma- 
ny. I have fully glutted my venge- 
ance. For my country, I rejoice 
at the beams of peace. Yet, do 
not harbor the thought, t! at mine 
is the joy of fear. Logan never 
felt fear. He will not turn on his 
heel to save his life. Who is there 
to mourn for Logan ? Not one." 

The right hand translation is literally the same as the copy 
given in Jefferson's Notes, page 124, and is doubtless the 
version given out by himself at the time. The authenticity 
of the ideas, and if nbt the words, at all events the style is, 
in some degree, sustained by another piece of Logan's 
composition, which w\s found tied to L war club at the 
house of one Robertson^ in Fincastle ec-unty, Va., after a 
massacre of his family by\ the Indians. Logan had pre- 
viously caused it to be written witly4 burnt stick by a pris- 
oner named William Robinsdn, spying he would kill some- 
body and leave the letter in tho,nouse. 

u Capt. Cresap— what did you kill my people on Yellow Creek for? 
The white people killed my kin at Conestoga a great while ago, and 
I thought nothing of that ; but you killed my kin again at Yellow 
Creek and took my cousin prisoner. 1 % bought I must kill too. I 
have been three times to was?' since; but &ie Indians are not angry, 
only myself. July 21, 1774. \ Capt. John Logan." 

I have shown elsewhere that Logan was mistaken as to 
the connexion of Cresap with the murders at Baker's. 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWNS IN 1 7 74. 



28 



It was repeated throughout the North American col- 
onies as a lesson of eloquence in the schools, and copied 
upon the pages of literary journals in Great Britain and 
the Continent. This brief effusion of mingled pride, 
courage and sorrow, elevated the character of the na- 
tive American throughout the intelligent world ; and the 
place where it was delivered can never be forgotten so 
long as touching eloquence is admired by men. 

Camp Charlotte was situated on the south-west quarter of 
section 12, town 10, range 21, upon apleasant piece of ground 
in view of the Pickaway plains. It was without permanent 
defences, or at least there are no remains of intrenchments, 
and is accessible on all sides. The creek in front formed no 
impediment to an approach from that quarter; and the coun- 
try is level in the rear. Camp Lewis is said to be upon more 
defensible ground on the north-east quarter of section 30, 
same township and range. The two encampments have of- 
ten been confounded with each other. 

The testimony which I shall here introduce, was devel- 
oped in the year 1830, in a case in/the Supreme Court of 
Ohio for Pickaway county, wher€3 questions relating to the 
position of Camp Charlotte 'and the Chillicothe towns, were 
involved. It was furnished me by J. D. Calwell, Esq., of 
Chillicothe, counsel for defendants, in the suit of John 
Gibson's heirs vs. Duncan HcArthur, and others. It 
consists of depositions taken upon the ground at Camp 
Charlotte, for the purpose of sustaining the description of a 

\ 



LORD DUNMORE'S EXPEDITION 



Virginia military warrant, which reads thus — "August 2d, 
1787— Entry No. 450. John JollifF's (heir) enters 2,666§ 
acres ; a military warrant No. 825, on the Scioto river, at 
the first fork above the old Chillicothe town, which town is 
about seven miles from a place. called Camp Charlotte," &c. 

Caleb Evans deposes and says, that he was here 32 years ago, and 
noticed these stumps, and old John Hargus told me it was Camp 
Charlotte. Hargus said he was a captain of spies with Dunmore, and 
when they came here the Indians crowded them so that Dunmore and 
six or seven others, myself included, went across to meet Lewis, who 
was encamped on Congo (creek) on some knolls where Judge Barr 
now lives. We met Lewis just after he had left his camp to give bat- 
tle to the Indians, and ordered him back. I was here when there were 
no marks of an axe in these parts except at these two camps. Har- 
gus and myself were the only persons then in this vicinity. The cat- 
tle of the army were kept on a prairie across the creek. 

Thos. Barr. Deponent was here 32 years ago. I went back to 
Pennsylvania and saw Col. Williamson, who was with Dunmore. 
We differed about the appearance of Camp Charlotte ; and after I 
saw this place the next season, and I went back again, we agreed in 
every particular. There was a spring and five or six trees deadened 
by him in a drain. Lewis' camp is about five miles west of this on 
Congo. One Boggs came through the country about that time, who 
was at the camp, and said this is the spot. Boggs told about Dunmore 
overtaking Lewis and ordering him to stop and not attack the Indian 
towns. I saw Mr. Mclntyre, of Zanesville, soon after that place was 
settled. Mr. Mclntyre and Mr. Zane were to lay out a road from 
Wheeling through Zanesville, Standing Stone, (now Lancaster,) Chil- 
licothe, (meaning the settlement in Ross county,) to Limestone, now 
Maysville. They took an Indian pilot to lead them to Chillicothe. 
He led them to the place now called Westfall, and said that was Chil- 
licothe, the only Chillicothe he knew of. This was about 29 years ago. 

George Wolp. I live near Camp Lewis, and came here 33 years 
ago. 1 heard John Hargus and John Boggs talk about this place and 
call it Camp Charlotte. 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWNS IN 17 74. 25 

James Moore. I came to ; Chillicothe (in Ross county,) in 1796. 
In 1797 or 1798, 1 went upon the ground where Westfall now is. I 
moved therein 1799, and it appeared to have been an Indian town. 
The Indians who were about there said the inhabitants called them- 
selves Chiilicothees and their town Chillicothee. They had a town 
on the north fork of Paint Greek of the same name, and another on 
Mad river. They called this at Westfall Old Chillicothee. These 
Indians were Shawnees, Delawares and Wyandots, and said the rea- 
son the Chiilicothees left was the prevalence of the small pox. De- 
scribing the disease, the Indians said the people — die — die — die — 
Some day one — some day two ; and they bury — bury — bury— and 
pointed out the graves. 

Fergus Moore testified to same as James Moore, and ad- 
ded, that in digging the Ohio Canal, bones were found in 
great numbers at the places shown to them as graves. 

This evidence will probably be considered as conclusive 
in relation to the position of Old Chillicothe and the two 
camps. 

Before Lord Dunmore reached the vicinity of the Indian 
towns he was met by a flag of truce, borne by a white 
man named Elliott, desiring a halt on the part of the troops, 
and requesting for the Chiefs an interpreter with whom 
they could communicate.* To this his Lordship, who, ac- 
cording to the Virginians, had an aversion to fighting, read- 
ily assented. They furthermore charged him with the de- 
sign of forming an alliance with the confederacy, to assist 
Great Britain against the colonies in the crisis of the revo- 
lution, which every one foresaw. He, however, moved 

forward to camp Charlotte, which was established rather as 
f — _ _ .. _ i 

*Gibso&tf Affidavit. 

\ 



36 



LORD DUNMORE'S EXPEDITION 



a convenient council ground, than as a place of security or 
defence. The Virginia militia came here for the purpose 
of fighting, and their dissatisfaction and disappointment at 
the result amounted almost to mutiny. Lewis refused to 
obey the order for a halt, considering the enemy as already 
within his grasp, and of inferior numbers to his own. Dun- 
more, as we have seen, went in person to enforce his or- 
ders, and it is said drew his sword upon Colonel Lewis, 
threatening him with instant death if he persisted in farther 
disobedience. 

The troops were concentrated at Camp Charlotte, num- 
bering about 2,500 men. The principal Chiefs of the Sci- 
oto tribes had been assembled, and some days were spent 
in negotiations. A compact or treaty was at length con- 
cluded, and four hostages put in possession of the Gover- 
nor to be taken to Virginia. || We know very little of the 
precise terms of this treaty, nor even of the tribes who 
gave it their assent. It is said the Indians agreed to make 
the Ohio their boundary, and the whites stipulated not to 
pass beyond that river. 

An agreement was entered into for a talk at Pittsburgh 

l|The following extract of a Letter from Arthur St. Clair to Gov. Penn, dated Li- 
gonier, Dec. 4, 1774, needs confirmation. It is but one of many instances of the 
contradictory statements which embarrass our conclusions in reference to the im- 
portant doings of the year 1774. 

" The Mingoes that live on the Scioto did not appear to treat, and a party was 
sent to destroy their towns, which was effected, and there are (12) twelve of them 
pritoners in Fort Pitt." [American Archives, vol. 1, p. 1,013.] 




in the following spring, where a more full treaty was to be 
made *jts^^ y 





At what precise time the British standard left the ' 
Pickaway plains we are not informed ; nor by what route, 
after passing Fort Gower, or whether in a body or in de- 
tachments, the troops made their way home to the settle- 
ments. It is said that they reached Virginia highly dissat- 
isfied with the Governor and the treaty ; but this dissatis- 
faction does not appear to have been general. 

Dunmore had assumed the credit of the battle at Point 
Pleasant. The Virginians, who participated in that action, 
denied that it was an event in which he had the remotest 
concern ; and not only was not aware of the affair till after 
it had occurred, but had neither anticipated or desired its 
occurrence-! The troops were not paid, and they repre- 
sented the whole proceeding as a method of forming an 
alliance with the western confederacy, of which fighting 
formed no part in his Lordship's plan. His position was 
one of difficulty ; and he seems to have been deficient in 
the qualities of prudence, determination and self-command 
so necessary to one thus situated. He is represented as a 
haughty, wayward, and unapproachable person, with a sel- 
fi~h, hesitating and overbearing mind. 

In addition to the scattered items of this expedition here 
given, I will add a statement, which comes very well au- 



* American Archives; ''vol. 1, p. 1,222. 
JBurke'8 History of Virginia, vol. 3, p. 406. 



28 LORD DUNMORE's EXPEDITION 

thenticated, but seems to contradict other well known facts. 
It is in relation to another campaign to the Indian country, 
by Dunmore, in the year following, or 1775. It was rela- 
ted tome by Walter Curtis, Esq., of Belpre, Washington 
county, Ohio, and I think transmitted by him in substance 
to the Secretary of this Society. Mr. Curtis received it 
from Gen. Clark, an eminent citizen of Missouri, a brother 
of Gen. George Rogers Clark, of Kentucky. 

In 1831, a steam-boat was detained a few hours near the 
house of Mr. Curtis, on the Ohio, a short distance above the 
mouth of the Hockhocking, and Gen. Clark came ashore. 
He inquired respecting the remains of a Fort or encamp- 
ment at the mouth of the Hockhocking river, as it is now 
called. He was told that there was evidence of a clearing 
of several acres in extent, and that pieces of guns and mus- 
kets had been found on the spot ; and also, that a collection 
of several hundred bullets had been discovered on the 
bank of the Hockhocking, about 25 miles up the river. 
Gen. Clark then stated, that the ground had been occupied 
as a camp by Lord Dunmore, who came down the Kenha- 
wa with 300 men in the spring of 1775, with the expecta- 
tion of treating with the Indians here. The Chiefs notma- 
making their appearance, the march was continued up the 
river 25 or 30 miles, where an express from Virginia over* 
took the party. That evening a council was held and last- 
ed till very late at night. In the morning the troops were 
disbanded, and immediately requested to enlist in the Brit- 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWNS IN 17 7 4. 



29 



ish service for a stated period. The contents of the de- 
spatches had not transpired when this proposition was made. 
A major of militia, by the name of McCarty, made an har- 
angue to the men against enlisting, which seems to have 
been done in an eloquent and effectual manner. He refer- 
red to the condition of the public mind in the colonies, and 
the probability of a revolution, which must soon arrive- 
He represented the suspicious circumstances of the express, 
which was still a secret to the troops, and that appearances 
justified the conclusion, that they were required to enlist in 
a service against their own countrymen, their own kindred, 
their own homes. The consequence was, that but few of 
the men re-enlisted, and the majority, choosing the orator 
as a leader, made the best of their way to Wheeling. The 
news brought out by the courier proved to be an account 
of the opening combat of the Revolution at Lexington, 
Mass., April 20, 1775. Gen. Clark stated that himself (or 
his brother,) was in the expedition. 

Lord Dunmore is said to have returned to Virginia by 
way of the Kenhawa river. 

There are very few historical details sustained by better 
authority than the above relation. Desirous of reconciling 
this statement with history, I addressed a letter to General 
Clark, requesting an explanation, but his death, which hap- 
pened soon after, prevented a reply. It would be as diffi- 
cult to pronounce it an entire error, as to give it full belief. 

On the 20th of April, Dunmore had lost all influence in 



30 



LORD DUNMORE's EXPEDITION 



Virginia, entrenched himself in his house at Williamsburg, 
and removed the powder from the magazine on board the 
Fowey, a British vessel of war. The people were then in 
arms, not for the purpose of organizing war parties against 
the Indian country, but intending to assault the troops and 
marines of England, which the Governor had posted on his 
premises, to ensure the safety of, or to prevent access to, his 
person. Before the 17th of July, he had abandoned the 
capital, and removed to the Fowey with his family and pa- 
pers. There is no mention of more than one expedition in 
the history of Virginia, and he is stated to have been there 
when the battle of Lexington was first known ; and is 
accounted for from that time until August of the subse- 
quent year. 

I leave it for farther information to refute or establish 
the truth of this narrative ; and offer it here because no 
shadow of evidence respecting the transactions of that in- 
teresting period in the west, ought to be neglected. For 
the same reason I attach the following copies of Resolu- 
tions, &c, taken from the " American Archives," a most 
valuable publication, issued and issuing at the expense of 
the United States. In this publication the government has 
spared no pains to obtain correspondence in all the states, 
and in foreign countries, illustrating our history prior to the 
close of the Revolution. The first extract has some rela- 
tion to the statement of Gen. Clark of a meeting of the of- 
ficers under Dunmore, but in a different year. 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWNS IN 1 7 7 4. 



3i 



" At a meeting of the Officers under the command of His Excellen- 
cy Rt. Hon. Earl of Dunmore, convened at Fort Goiver, Nov. 5, 1774, 
for the purposes of considering the grievances of British America, an 
officer present addressed the meeting in the following words : 

■^Gentlemen — Having now concluded the campaign by the assist- 
ance of Providence, with honor and advantage to the Colony and our- 
selves, it only remains that we should give our country the stronger 
assurance that we are ready at all times, to the utmost of our power, 
to maintain and defend her just rights and privileges. We have liv- 
ed about three months in the woods, without any intelligence from 
Boston, or from the Delegates at Philadelphia. It is possible, from the 
groundless reports of designing men, that our countrymen may be 
jealous of the use such a body would make of arms in their haods at 
this critical juncture. That we are a respectable body is certain, when 
it is considered that we can live weeks without bread or salt ; that we 
can sleep in the open air without any covering but that of the canopy 
of heaven ; and that we can march and shoot with any in the known 
world. Blessed with these talents, let us solemnly engage to one an- 
other, and our country in particular, that we will use them for no pur* 
pose but for the honor and advantage of America, and of Virginia in 
particular. It behooves us then, for the satisfaction of our country, 
that we should give them our real sentim ents by way of Resolves, at 
this very alarming crisis. 

^Whereupon the meeting made choice of a committee to draw up 
and prepare Resolves for their consideration ; who immediately with- 
drew,and after some time spent therein, reported that they had agreed 
to and prepared the following Resolves, which were read, maturely 
considered, and agreed to nem. con. by the meeting, and ordered to 
be published in the Virginia Gazette : 

-•--Resolved, That we will bear the most faithful allegiance to His 
Majesty King George the Third, whilst His Majesty delights to 
reign over a brave and a free people ; that we will, at the expense of 
life and every ihing dear and valuable, exert ou rselves in the support 
of the honor of his Crown and the dignity of the British Empire. 
But as the love of liberty and attachment to the real interests and just 
rights of America outweigh every other consideration, we resolve; 
that we wil exert every power within us foi the defence of American 



32 LORD DUNMOIIE'S EXPEDITION 

liberty, and for the support of her just rights and privileges, not in 
any precipitous, riotous, or tumultuous manner, but when regularly 
called forth by the unanimous voice of our countrymen. 

^Resolved, That we entertain the greatest respect for His Excel- 
lency the Rt Hon. Lord Dunmore, who commanded the expedition 
against the Shawanese, and who we are confident underwent the great 
fatigue of this singular campaign from no other motive than the true 
interests of the country. 

Signed by order and in behalf of the whole corps. 

" Benjamin Ashby, Clerk^' 

These resolutions bear date only ten days after the arri- 
val of Lewis at camp Charlotte. Of this time at least four 
days must have been occupied in the march, which must 
have exceeded eighty miles in distance, and we may infer 
that the troops moved from the Indian towns about the 1st 
of November, 1774. 

We are not able to determine whether Lord Dunmore 
was present when these resolutions were adopted. On the 
12th instant he is found at Fort Burd, near Pittsburg, sit- 
ting in judgment upon one of the refractory Pennsylvani- 
ansfor violating the Virginia proclamation. He arrived at 
Williamsburg, Va., on the 4th of December, and received 
the attentions and congratulations of the public authorities. 
— American Archives, vol. l,page 1,018. 

It is highly probable that the army was disbanded at 
Fort Gower, and came home in different parties, and by 
such routes as were nearest and most convenient. The 
hostages had not arrived at Williamsburg at the above date, 



AGAINST THE SCIOTO TOWNS IN 17 7 4. 33 



in fact (12) twelve of them were left at Fort Dunmore, as 
the Virginians called Fort Pitt. 

The delivery of white prisoners and horses in possession 
of the Indians appears to have taken place at Point Pleas- 
ant early in February. 

"Williamsburg, Va.,Feb. 10, 1775. 
" A private letter from the frontiers gives an account that the Corn- 
stalk King of the Shawanese nation, a few days ago arrived at the 
mouth of the Great Kenhawa, where Capt. Russell is statisned, and 
delivered to him several of the old white prisoners, and a number of 
horses, agreeable to Lord Dunmore's desire. The Ccrr.stalk informs 
that every thing at present is peaceable and quiet in the quarter he 
left, but that he would not undertake to say how long that pacific dis- 
position would last, as the Pennsylvanians have sent some of their 
traders there, who were endeavoring all they could to persuade them 
that Lord Dunmore's view, in bringing the hostages to Williamsburg, 
was to deceive them, and that whenever it was in his power to raise 
another army, he would immediately take every advantage and cut 
them off. This kind of reasoning had no material effect it seems, as 
the Indians throughout the different tribes entertain the highest opinion 
of his Lordship's conduct with respect to his late manoeuvres on the 
frontiers. 

" This morning we received information from a gentleman at the 
Ohio, that the Mingo Indians have killed three of the Delaw ares, which 
gives much concern to the neighboring white people. The Pennsyl- 
vanians, it appears, are greatly blamed, as they use every artifice in 
their power to create discontent and jealousy among the Indians. — 
Our correspondent says, they took one of our constables and imme- 
diately confined him in one of their jails; upon which two companies 
of the Virginians assembled, being determined to rescue him, which 
»hey did, together with some others which they served in the same 
manner, and also pulled down the jail. The Mingoes, we are like- 
wise informed, are very desirous to see Lord Dunmore, in order fully 
to comply with his terms, and to make a lasting peace with him." 

American Archives, page 1,226. 



